Rail-joint.



PATENTED MAR. 24, 1908.

F. A. COLLIER.

RAIL JOINT.

urmouxox FILED HAYS. 1901.

FRANK A. COLLIER, OF GALVESTON, TEXAS.

RAIL-JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 24, 1908.

Application filed May 3, 1907. Serial No. 371,611.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK A. COLLIER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Galveston, in the county of Galveston and State of Texas, have invented new and useful Im rovements in Rail -Joints, of which the fol owing is a specification.

This invention relates to a railroad track construction and relates more particularly to a rail oint especially designed to maintain the rails in perfect alinement so that there will not be relative vertical movement as the car wheels pass from one rail section to another, thus insuring freedom from shocks and noises as a train passes over the track.

The invention has for one of its objects to provide a rail joint inwhich the usual fish plates are. dispensed with and the abutting ends of the rail sections connected by longitudinally extending bolts disposed along opposite sides of the rail sections and eX tending through enlargements or abutments forged with the rails.

With these objects in view and others as will appear as the description proceeds, the invention comprises the various novel features of construction. and arrangement of parts which will be more fully described hereinafter and. set forth with particularity in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawings Which illustrate one of the embodiments of the invention, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a rail equipped with the improved joint. Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, and Fig. 3 is a transverse section on line 3 3, Fig.

Similar reference characters are employed to designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawing, A and B designate the abutting ends of two adjacent rails which latter are of any approved construction and comprises head 1, webs 2 and bases ,3, the rail sections being mounted on crossties 4 and secured thereto by spikes 5. The end surfaces are disposed at right angles to the length of the rail section, and the ends of the section are forged with side enlargements 6, each enlargement extending from the bottom of the head 1 to the base 3 and from the web to a point coinciding with the outer edge of the base, there being a longipassages 7 in the enlargements of one rail are adapted to register with the passages of the enlargements of the adjacent rails and extending through the registering passages are bolts 8 of substantial dimensions so that they can take the place of ordinary fish plates for preventing lateral displacement of the rail sections, their primary object being to hold. the rail sections together and prevent relative vertical displacement as the car wheels pass from one rail section to the other. The outer end walls 9 of the enlargements are disposed at right angles to the passages 7 so that the heads 10 and nuts 11 of the bolts can be drawn tight against the said walls.

In practice the rail sections are laid by placing them on the ties in the usual manner and bringing the abutting ends together. Afterwards, the bolts 8 are passed through the passages 7 in corresponding enlargements 6, the bolts being inserted from opposite ends, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. After the nuts to the bolts are firmly tightened, the section can be spiked. to the cross-ties in the usual manner. .A rail joint of this character is effective in preserving alinement so that shocks andnoises incident to the passage of the wheels over the joints is reduced to a minimum and the rail sections can be readily taken up and replaced as in the case of reconstructing or repairing the road-bed.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, the advantages of the construction and of the method of operation will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains, and while I have described the principles of operation of the invention, together with the device which I now consider to be the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that the device shown is merely illustrative and that such changes may be made when desired as are within the scope of the claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is':-

The combination of a pair of rails each consisting of a head, a base, and a web and provided with terminal enlargements at opposite sides of the web and integrally connected with the latter and also with the head and base and having longitudinaily-extendi said enlargements forming housings for the ing bores, the enlargements extending inshank portions of the bolt. wardly from the end surfaces of the rails to In testimony whereof, I affix my signature such a distance as to extend partially over in presence of two Witnesses.

the tWo adjacent cross ties at the meeting FRANK A, COLLIER ends of the rails and bolts extending through Witnesses:

the bores of corresponding enlargements to BERNHARD GOLDBERG,

secure the abutting ends of the rails together, BREWSTER S. HART. 

